After a brief flirt, Wednesday, with the ceiling of November’s falling channel (7065), the UK Index is on the back foot into the weekend. Losses from the heavyweight Oil majors and Miners are overpowering the strength from a selection of Defensives (tobacco, pharma, telecoms) and high-street Banks (Lloyds and HSBC). The Pound Sterling has been both…
It’s that time of year again, when we refresh our statistics and take another look at the year-end phenomenon known as the Santa rally. The bullish theory holds that equities tend to rally in December, fuelled by a combination of window-dressing by portfolio managers, holiday-thinned trading volumes and self-fulfilling prophecy. Our latest report looks at…
Silver miner Fresnillo trades fresh 2018 lows after a 12% share price plunge Thursday and another 7% today. Why? Analysts at Morgan Stanley downgraded it to Underweight and cut their target to 715p (from 1100p). Why? A series of bills in the Mexican parliament that could restrict mining. This highlights a glaring issue for long-term…
Many investors assume that all UK Index Banks are the same and their share prices move in lockstep. Invest in one, invest in the other, what’s the difference? Today is a great example of a trading session that proves nothing could be further from the truth. Some of the blue-chip Banks are rallying (RBS), others…
Another day, another takeover, with a handsome 35% share price jump to boot. And today its the turn of specialty healthcare/biotech company BTG which could be snapped up by Boston Scientific after it offered 840p cash per share (36% premium). BTG operates via 3 segments; interventional medicine (oncology (cancer), vascular, pulmonology), pharmacuticals and licensing, and has been formed…
As we move into the weekend the UK 100 is bouncing from another flirt with round number 7000, albeit still stuck in what is now a week-long sideways channel with a 7000 floor and 7100 ceiling. Uncertainty remains with regards to UK politics and Brexit, which could yet move GBP next week with a knock-on…